Reinterpreting Quantum Evolution as Causal Alignment: A Geometric Field Theory of the Present

Modern quantum theory treats time as an external parameter, whereas relativity embeds all events within a static spacetime manifold. Neither framework explains the physical reality of the “Now” or the mechanism by which causal progression unfolds. Chronon Field Theory (CFT) introduces an intrinsic causal alignment field Φμ(x)\( \) whose self-organization generates both geometry and temporality. Quantization arises from the discrete holonomy of the causal connection, while measurement corresponds to boundary-induced synchronization of causal phases. The characteristic coherence speed \( v_{\mathrm{coh}}=\sqrt{J/\chi}=c \) defines the invariant rate at which causal order advances—an intrinsic causal rate rather than the motion of matter or signals. The geometric action quantum \( hbar_{\mathrm{geom}} \), derived from the CFT parameters (J, λ, χ), provides the natural origin of Planck’s constant. Within this framework, quantum discreteness, relativistic invariance, and temporal becoming emerge as complementary manifestations of a single causal–geometric field dynamics.